World of Horrors: Chanyeol’s Nightmare

Prompt: World of Horrors: Chanyeol’s Nightmare

Chanyeol stood at the edge of the dilapidated town, swallowing hard as darkness settled in. The sun had dipped beyond the horizon, casting long shadows that twisted and warped with the night. A chill prickled at the back of his neck, a whisper of foreboding mingling with the evening air. Tonight would be different. Tonight, he would face the nightmares brewing deeper than any dream could reach. He had always dismissed the old wives’ tales spun about Elders Hollow. Legends of monstrous beings lurking in every corner, waiting to snatch away those who dared to wander after sunset—Chanyeol had laughed them off. They were just tales to frighten children, he had thought. Yet, as he stepped into the town, every hair on his body stood on end, a primal instinct urging him to turn back. “Just a stupid bet,” he muttered under his breath, fists clenching at his sides. His friends had dared him to spend the night in the haunted house at the end of the street, a structure enveloped in mystery and decay. The decrepit walls seemed to breathe with a life of their own, the air thick with the scent of mold and rot. At that moment, however, the bravado he usually carried felt like nothing more than an illusion, a thin veil covering the rising tide of fear. As he pushed open the creaking front door, it groaned as if protesting against his intrusion. The inside was dimly lit by rays of moonlight filtering through broken windows. Furniture draped in dusty sheets loomed like phantoms, their outlines unfamiliar and eerie in the twilight. With his heart racing, Chanyeol reached for his phone, the screen illuminating the immediate surroundings—a small flashlight would have been ideal, but this was all he had now. “Stay calm,” he whispered, finding his voice. “It’s just a house.” Yet, as the shadows flitted across the walls, he felt the air grow heavier, suffocating him. The floorboards creaked beneath his feet, echoing each step in the silence like the heartbeat of forgotten souls. He ventured further inside, drawn by a strange force, though his instincts screamed for him to flee. Windows shattered above him, splinters raining down as though the house itself were angry at his trespass. With the moon lighting the way, he entered the parlor. Cobwebs hung like curtains, and a grand fireplace stood dark and cold, its hearth long since abandoned. An old, cracked mirror hung above the mantle, its surface shrouded in grime. As he studied it, unease settled in his stomach. Something about the reflection felt wrong; it wasn’t merely his own image staring back. “Get a grip, Chanyeol,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s just an old mirror.” But as he turned away, a flicker at the edge of his vision caught his attention. He glanced back, and for a brief moment, he swore he saw a figure, pale and gaunt, lurking in the shadows behind him. The scream that clawed at his throat caught in his chest, and in a second, he was sprinting towards the hall, heart pounding like a frantic drum. He burst through a door at the far end, throwing himself into a room that appeared once to be a child’s nursery. Faded wallpaper decorated with a cheerful pattern of flowers and butterflies clashed violently with the eerie silence that now enveloped him. A vintage rocking horse sat still in one corner, a thin layer of dust cloaking it like a forlorn memory. Suddenly, laughter echoed through the air—high-pitched and chilling, like ice scraping against metal. Chanyeol froze, goosebumps blooming across his skin. The laughter was accompanied by soft whispers, incomprehensible yet thick with malicious glee. “Welcome, Chanyeol,” they crooned. “You’ve come to play.” He felt something grip his ankle, a cold, relentless force dragging him down. Panic surged through him as he fought against it, but the hold only tightened. From the shadows, faces emerged, each contorted in cruel delight. They were children, their eyes wide and empty, skin pale and mottled. They circled him like vultures, voices intertwining in a cacophony of joy and chaos. “Join us forever,” they sang, tilting their heads in unison. “We just want to play.” Chanyeol's breath quickened as he struggled, clawing at the floorboards in a desperate bid for freedom. The macabre little hands clawed at him closer, their giggles vibrating through the floor, resonating with an unholy energy. He could see the door—the dim outline beckoned him, but it felt a hundred lifetimes away. “Let go! Please!” he shouted, his voice cracking. “I don’t want to play!” Yet the children only laughed harder, a tormenting sound that drowned out his fears. With a primal scream, Chanyeol summoned every ounce of strength and yanked his leg free, scrambling to the door. He flung it open and hurtled into the hallway, adrenaline coursing through his veins. Footsteps echoed behind him, a relentless pursuit of joy—a curiosity that turned deadly. He dashed through the maze of darkness, fueled by instinct rather than thought. Frantic images flickered past him; visions of ghostly children, their faces twisted in delight, danced in his mind, urging him into despair. “You can’t escape!” they sang, their voices haunting his every step. At last, he reached the entrance, heaving against the front door with all his might. It felt like an iron weight holding him back, as if the house itself were conspiring to keep him prisoner. With one last desperate grunt, he pushed through, the door creaking open under the pressure and threw himself into the night. Gasping for air, he collapsed onto the lawn, the cold grass grounding him as he stared back towards the house. Shadows shifted behind broken windows, and the laughter continued to echo, a haunting melody that would follow him long after he left Elders Hollow. It was a nightmare he would not soon forget. As he crawled to his feet, Chanyeol made a silent vow that he would never again challenge the tales spun by frightened children. Tonight, he'd faced the horrors of the unknown and lived to tell the tale—barely. The world of the living somehow felt less vibrant, knowing that somewhere in the dark, his nightmarish friend waited patiently for the next victim.